273: Career Conversations: 'Why I'm glad I fought for a career in food'

<div>Liz Littlewood says she struggled at first to convince her parents and her <a href="https://foodmatterslive.com/discover/podcast/are-we-teaching-kids-enough-about-food-podcasts/">teachers</a> that a career in food was a good choice: "I had to fight quite hard to continue doing it at school and then university."<br> <br> </div> <div>But she did persevere and now, as <a href="https://jobs.coop.co.uk/">Co-op's</a> Lead Technical Manager for Ambient Foods, Non-Food, <a href="https://foodmatterslive.com/discover/podcast/is-the-history-of-beer-at-the-heart-of-human-civilisation-food-podcasts/">Beers</a>, <a href="https://foodmatterslive.com/discover/podcast/the-history-of-english-wine-and-its-sparkling-future/">Wines</a> and Spirits, she says she's so pleased she stuck with it.<br> <br> </div> <div>"I'm really glad I got a job that I really enjoy and I've had a varied career," she tells Elisa Roche in this episode of the Career Conversations podcast series.<br> <br> </div> <div>Liz's journey so far has seen her get a degree in <a href="https://www.mmu.ac.uk/food-centre/food-science/#:~:text=Food%20and%20Nutrtion%20at%20Manchester,creation%20to%20full%20commercial%20launch.">Food Technology at Manchester Met University</a>, work for M&amp;S, Morrisons, and now the Co-op.<br> <br> </div> <div>Her current role comes with a fair bit of power, she and her team have the ability to stop a product going into stores at pretty much any stage of the development process.<br> <br> </div> <div>It also requires a bit of knowledge about a lot of things, from the manufacturing process, to packaging, transport and distribution, and legal and legislative requirements.<br> <br> </div> <div>"You end up maybe not being an expert on everything, but having a wide range of knowledge across lots of things," she says. "And you certainly know the right person to ask!"<br> <br> </div> <div>Listen to the full episode to find out exactly what a Lead Technical Manager does, the parts Liz enjoys most about her job, and the product she has